Hail to thee, warriors of the world. Weary of continually polishing your mighty sword or washing your bloodstained loincloth in anticipation of the next slab of homoerotic battle fantasies from a certain band of American warriors? Then saddle your horse, drink your last ale and look no further than costumed European guardians of true metal, Warkings.

For their fourth full length studio outing, the Viking, Crusader, Spartan and Roman Tribune (aka members of German act Souldrinker and Serenity vocalist Georg Neuhauser) return with sorceress and regular contributor Morgana la Fey (Turkish singer Secil Sen) for the quasi-conceptual Morgana (Napalm Records).

 

Told over four chapters throughout the album, the story of the Arthurian witch and her relationship with the king begins on ‘Hellfire’, a melodic blast which finds classic power metal vocals entwined with Morgana’s guttural snarl. The next part comes in the shape of ‘Monsters’, a simple but effective journey into riffdom that shows how everyone has a dark side. Possessing a Middle Eastern vibe, a powerful driving rhythm and a rousing chorus, ‘Heart Of Rage’ is about Morgana’s desire to grant forgiveness to all who have hurt her before the story concludes with ‘Immortal’ a song explaining how she and Arthur’s souls are reborn again and again.

 

Elsewhere, ‘To The King’ is a classic style Mano-hymn with a mid-paced stomp and an infectious woah-oh chorus, ‘Shame’ bides its time until it launches into an impressive chorus, and the superb ‘Last of the English’ is based on the story of Hereward the Wake, an Anglo-Saxon nobleman and leader of local resistance to the Norman Conquest of England.

 

Another song steeped in history, the surging ‘Row (Into the storm)’ is about how the Greeks defeated Xerxes and his Persian fleet in 480BC at the Battle of Salamis, the largest naval battle ever fought in the ancient world. ‘The Rite’ features verses as memorable as its magnificent chorus and ‘Legend Untold’ brings the curtain down in no shortage of style. As bonus tracks, the band present thumping versions of ‘Amarta Strigoi’ by Powerwolf and ‘Cry Thunder’ by Dragonforce, the latter featuring Morgana la Fey once more.

 

Containing no unwanted surprises or pointless left turns, Morgana goes exactly what you want it to, delivering even more historically-driven metal fuelled by soaring vocals, chunky riffs and flying guitar solos.

 

So, grab your helmet and point your fearsome weapon towards the battlefield. The Warkings are coming once more.

 

Buy the album here: https://www.warkings.rocks/

 

8 / 10

GARY ALCOCK